Northwestern Mutual names Richmond managing partner

Northwestern Mutual named Heather Zepeda as managing partner of its network office in Richmond on Monday. She will oversee the offices in Richmond, Charlottesville, the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia Beach and Williamsburg.

Zepeda joined the financial security company in 2010 after a legal career. She worked as managing director of the Washington, D.C., office and moved up the ranks.

According to her LinkedIn profile, Zepeda worked for the law firm Howrey as an antitrust attorney, then Lucas Group as a senior recruiter and a consultant for The McCormick Group before she joined Northwestern Mutual.

“My initial focus is to widen our presence throughout Virginia with new offices, achieve 50% growth in our financial representatives within the next five years and foster an inclusive and empowering culture that reflects the rich diversity of our community. Those elements will not only allow us to better serve existing clients as we work to free them from financial anxiety, but to reach new clients as well,” Zepeda said in a statement.

Zepeda went to the University of North Carolina Law School and earned her bachelor’s degree at High Point University.